Last Lincoln Blog Corrected

Abraham Lincoln, in his Second Inaugural Address (1865), blames the sins and wrongdoings of the south for causing the war to fall upon the Americans. Lincoln insures that the south is at fault by pointing out that during his first inaugural address which promoted peace to save the nation, the south was doing the opposite, the south continued to own slaves, and the sin of slavery caused both the south and the north to be punished. Lincoln brings in the bible verse “Woe unto the world because of offenses; for it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh” in order to prove that the south’s transgressions brought “woe” onto all of America. Lincoln is reuniting America in and encouraging Americans to recognize that they are all apart of one country and one does something wrong, everyone suffers with them.

I agree with Lincoln for attempting to reunite America, but I disagree with his tactics. I understand that during his age, religion was a key factor, even in government, so I will not criticize him for not separating church and state. I do, however, disagree with him bringing up the point of everyone suffering, because of one groups’ sins. There is a common idea of everyone being on the same boat. When one person fails to row or sail correctly, everyone sinks. This is an idea I agree with, feel is important, try to practice in my daily life by taking responsibility for my own actions, and even see reflected in my religion. In Judaism, we have the phrase “כל ישראל ערבים זה לזה” which translates as “All of Israel are responsible for one another.” Even if I did not feel this way personally, this idea is a part of my religion and my everyday life, but I do not feel it had a place in Lincoln’s speech. Lincoln was speaking to the United States of America. Even though Americans should be united, both to achieve common goals and keep their national government structured, America is a land for everyone to have freedom. It is not on citizen's responsibility to look after a different citizen. People immigrated to America to start their own lives. I do not agree with the south’s decision of slavery, but a citizen should not have to feel that if he owns a slave, he is causing thousands of Americans to die at war. If he wants to feel this way, that is okay, but this view has no place in a speech by the leader of the country. This is similar to the constant argument over taxes. If someone who has a high income would want to donate money to the poor or government programs, that is amazing and I would do the same, but if America was founded so that people could live freely and equally, it is not fair to force those with higher incomes to pay for everyone else’s welfare. The south should not own slaves and people with high incomes should give money to the welfare of others, but the American government should not be telling people they have to.

Last Lincoln Blog

Abraham Lincoln, in his Second Inaugural Address (1865), points to the South as the cause of the Civil War, that has torn the country apart. Lincoln supports the idea that the South is at fault by bluntly addressing the issue of slavery, how slavery is against God’s will, and how the nation is now at war because of the South’s wrong doings. Abraham Lincoln bluntly states his arguments in order to show that war can no longer be prevented, and the South has long ago caused the war to begin. Lincoln is trying to make a statement to his audience that they should no longer strive for peace, but blame the South for the harsh war.

It is obvious to recognize that this speech is not like most of Lincoln’s speeches. In his past speeches we read, he was supporting what was best for America. Now, he is supporting what is best for the North. As president, an inaugural address, or any address, should discuss the issues of the country. While the war is an issue of the entire country, he clearly gives off the idea that he is speaking for the North, and not only is not helping the South, but is stirring up anger and problems for them. While he asked for peace in his last inaugural speech, he is now asking for war. It is understandable that his tone shifted from calm and friendly to harsh and blunt, but as a president, who is responsible for the whole country, he cannot shift from an American to a Northerner and outwardly express his anger towards the South. This is in no way going to solve the issues of the war and will only make the South angrier at the government and the north. While I do not support slavery at all, I do think that Lincoln should have addressed that it is not right, but not stating that it was the cause of the war and the South is at fault for all of the country's issues. He should have supported both sides of the country he is in charge of, not just one.

A Movement Has its Moments

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/28/opinion/a-movement-has-its-moment.html?ref=topics

Charles M. Blow, in “A Movement Has its Moments” (2015), supports the need for the Black Lives Matter campaign. Blow discusses the American idea of equality and justice through bringing in quotes from leading politicians and the preamble of the American Constitution and brings in a few quotes from those against the campaign towards the end. He uses the root idea of America of freedom and securing “the blessings of liberty” to show that those against the Black Lives Matter campaign are “un-American” and “ridiculous”. Blow is gaining support from Americans that are indifferent on the topic by turning them away from the anti-equality Americans that are against the Black Lives Matter campaign.

I fully agree with Blow that all Americans deserve equality, but I strongly disagree with the values, cases, and existence of the Black Lives Matter campaign and the points he made to support it. Although I recognize that the cases of police brutality and injustice commonly affect African Americans, I do not agree that these cases occur because the victims or people involved are African American. For a while in America, African Americans were considered lower class, despite their education level or occupation. We now live in a time where this is not true, but many African American families have still not yet picked themselves up and started successful careers and productive lifestyles. Because of this, It just so happens to be that the people living in lower income communities and what people call “sketchy” neighborhoods are African American. Although police should be better trained when entering these neighborhoods about how to make quick and life threatening decisions, they are doing their best and are never intentionally killing someone just because they are black. We are taught it is better to be safe than sorry, and these are the choices these police officers are dealing with. They are risking their lives and safety to enter these neighborhoods and are left to make difficult decisions in a quick amount of time. I do not think that any of these cases or occurring because they involve black people or because the black community is not treated the same way as white people.

Today, we live in a society where we have an African American president, our congressmen, doctors, athletes, and all other occupations are filled with people of different races, and African Americans are provided with every right that is granted to every citizen. I do not believe that the Black Lives Matter campaign needs to even exist, but if some people still feel there is a need to promote equality, there still could be a better way to go about it. Black Lives Matter has made it seem like the police, government officials, and America as a whole has been attacking and limiting the freedom of African Americans. Black Lives Matter was created to promote equality for African Americans, because they are being oppressed and are being treated unfairly. Their website states that we live in a world “where Black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise.” They have supported events and protests in Ferguson and Baltimore last year and although they did not promote to take part in the violent protests, they did not discourage them and supported their cause. Blow made it seem that anyone who was against the Black Lives Matter campaign should be considered a hater of equality and American values, but I strongly disagree. I do not believe that supporting an organization that barely has a need for existence and promotes anger, and in cases, violence should be considered “un-American”.